Shutterfly's Long Live Summer Photo Contest on Facebook.

In case you're in need of a fabulous summer vacation to wind down during these hot summer days, Shutterfly has come out with the contest for you! In case their top prizes (see below) weren't motivation enough, you get a gift just for entering, which is quick and easy to do. You can connect with Shutterfly to participate in the contest via their Facebook page, or via Twitter for more details.

In a nutshell:

Win a trip for four to The Bahamas and a professional photo shoot so you’ll remember your vacation forever.  All you need to do is upload your favorite photo and caption based on the theme of the week.  Get a gift from Shutterfly just for entering! You can enter at any point during the 5-week sweepstakes period.

PHOTO THEMES

•       Week 1(7/9): Americana

•       Week 2 (7/16): Great Outdoors

•       Week 3 (7/23): Water Fun

•       Week 4 (7/30): Sports & Activities

•       Week 5 (8/6): Parties & Celebrations

PRIZES

•       Instant win prizes just for submitting a photo!

•       Weekly prizes (contestants can enter one time/week)

•       Weekly featured photos: up to 5 weekly entries will be selected from the gallery and featured on the Facebook fan page and awarded a $500 gift card on Shutterfly and a copy of the new Lonely Planet travel photography book.

•       Grand prize: trip for 4 to Bahamas, 4 nights, family photo shoot

Happy snapping!

It's That Time of Year: Shutterfly Holiday Cards!

I’ve been slow to warm up to the idea of the holidays this year. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that it’s still hitting 80 degrees here on a regular basis, but I feel like I’m stuck somewhere back in August. Then, in setting up my calendar for the upcoming holiday season’s events, one deadline did excite me: placing my order for our 2011 holiday cards!

As you may remember from last year, we ordered our holiday cards from Shutterfly, and boy did we ever get a positive response! Our cards turned out absolutely delightful – far beyond what I had hoped – and so when considering my holiday cards for this year, there was no doubt in my mind that we’d be repeat customers.

On top of our Christmas Card order this year (we’re waiting to take some holiday-themed photos to choose our actual card and place our order), I’m going to be taking advantage of some of the other awesome photo items that Shutterfly offers, both for myself and for gift ideas for friends and family.

Here are some of my favorite ideas:

-Personalized 2012 Calendars! Who doesn’t need a calendar to get organized for the upcoming year? And rather than looking at stock pictures of waterfalls and animals, something tells me the grandparents would much rather look at cutie pie pictures of their favorite little granddaughter!

-Photo Books. Each year/during pregnancy, I have made my blog into a (lengthy!) photo (and text) book, and ever since, I’ve been hooked. If any big event has happened where photos have been taken without restraint, it’s been turned into a photo book at my house! With the holidays approaching, this seems like a perfect gift idea!

Have you started thinking about your Holiday/Christmas cards yet? When do you normally place your order? Will you be gifting any personalized photo items to friends and family?a

'Tis The Season...

...for holiday parties, endless gift shopping, and Christmas cards!!

I don't know about you, but I absolutely love mail this time of year, especially because of my years spent as a nanny. It never fails that even if I haven't heard from a family I worked for five years ago all year, I'll inevitably open up my mailbox one cold (ha! It was nearly 80 here today!!) December day to see their (albeit older) beautiful smiling faces. And who better to get your holiday cards from than the picture experts at Shutterfly?!?!

Each year it seems that almost every single card that pours in is from Shutterfly, and I absolutely adore checking out the enormous variety they offer with regards to their designs!

If you haven't been over to their site yet this year to place your order, the time is now! What are you waiting for? Click here to go straight over to their huge holiday card selection and choose your own from their plethora of designs. Even if Christmas isn't your thing, I can assure you there'll be a card for you to personalize with the message and background of your choice!

If holiday cards in general don't float your boat, or you're looking for that extra special gift for a relative this year, what better gift can you give than a personalized calendar or photo mug with your wee ones picture! Seeing as how this is Ava's first Christmas, I know that my family wants nothing more than to see her cheesy little grin plastered anywhere and everywhere they can!

For my own holiday cards, I'm torn between a few different designs. Care to vote?

1.I love the simplicity and focus on the one image...


2.My biggest issue with this one is the main color being blue...not that Christmas-y, but pretty just the same!


3.Love the multi-image format, particularly given the thousands of pics I've taken this year...